Carlton, Georgia
Seal of Georgia
Carlton · Madison County, Georgia
Population 329 (est. 2026: ~100)
Source: Census ACS 2023 · ACS 2023 + -25.53% annual growth projection

Carlton, Georgia

Madison County, Georgia · Population 263

Carlton sits in the rolling piedmont of northeast Georgia, tucked along the edge of Madison County about 20 miles northeast of Athens. It is a small place — fewer than 300 residents by most counts — surrounded by farmland and modest subdivisions that serve families working in Athens-Clarke County or Gainesville. There is no downtown commercial strip to speak of, no hospital, no transit stop. What Carlton has is space, relative affordability compared to the Athens metro creeping outward, and a tight community footprint where nearly everyone knows the neighbors. The nearest major city is Athens, roughly a half-hour drive southwest. For anything requiring a hospital, a mall, or a government office, residents look to Danielsville (the Madison County seat, just a few miles away) or Athens.

People & Demographics

The ACS 2022 figures put Carlton's population at 403 with 110 households. That gives an average household size of 3.66 — noticeably larger than Georgia's statewide average, suggesting a community built around families rather than singles or retirees. The median age is 34.1, which skews young.

The racial composition is more diverse than the surrounding rural county: 199 residents identify as White, 73 as Black, and 116 as Asian — a notable Asian population for a town this size in Madison County. Hispanic or Latino residents number 10. There are 67 children under 18 across these households, roughly one child for every 1.6 households.

Madison County as a whole holds about 30,120 people, meaning Carlton accounts for a small fraction of the county's population.

Economy & Employment

The median household income in Carlton is $43,409, which trails the Georgia statewide median by a meaningful margin. Per capita income sits at $17,897. Of the 403 residents, 146 fall below the federal poverty line — a poverty rate of roughly 36%, which is elevated even by rural Georgia standards.

The labor force counts 154 people, with 20 listed as unemployed, producing an unemployment rate around 13%. The local economy does not offer significant employment within Carlton itself. Most workers commute out, primarily toward Athens or the broader Madison County employment base. Agriculture, healthcare, manufacturing in nearby Gainesville, and service-sector work in Athens are the realistic employment draws for this area.

Housing

Carlton has 155 total housing units, 110 of which are occupied. The 45 vacant units represent a vacancy rate of about 29%, high by most measures and typical of very small rural Georgia towns where some housing stock sits between sales, rentals, or sits unused entirely.

Of occupied units, 86 are owner-occupied and 24 are renter-occupied — a strong ownership skew of about 78%. The median home value is $154,700, which remains accessible compared to the Athens metro, where values have climbed substantially. Median rent runs $1,063 per month, a figure that appears high relative to local incomes and may reflect limited rental inventory.

Schools

Carlton students attend Madison County Schools. There is no school physically located in Carlton itself; students feed into the county system alongside peers from Danielsville, Comer, Hull, Colbert, and Ila.

Madison County High School is the single high school serving the entire county, drawing nearly 1,500 students. The district is consolidated, meaning all roads eventually lead to Danielsville or the county campus.

Getting Around

Carlton is car-dependent without exception. Of 128 total workers, 86 drove alone to work, 41 carpooled, zero used public transit, zero walked, and only 1 worked from home. Carpooling at 32% of commuters is notably high — consistent with a lower-income rural community where vehicle access and gas costs are real considerations.

Aggregate travel time for all workers totals 4,765 minutes. Spread across 128 workers, that averages to roughly 37 minutes each way — a substantial daily commute reflecting the reality that Carlton's residents work primarily outside the town's boundaries, most likely in Athens or Danielsville.

Healthcare

No hospital or major medical facility exists in Carlton. The nearest significant hospital access runs through Athens, where Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center serves the region. Madison County itself has limited inpatient capacity.

For a current list of healthcare providers registered in Carlton, the CMS NPI Registry can be queried directly: NPI Registry – Carlton, GA.

Library

The nearest public library branch is the Winterville Branch Library, approximately 5.8 miles from Carlton. Phone: (706) 742-7735. The Winterville branch is part of the Athens Regional Library System, which provides access to physical collections, digital resources, and interlibrary loan.

Natural Hazards

Madison County has a documented history with FEMA disaster declarations going back to 1973. The county has faced an unusually broad range of hazards:

The pattern shows consistent vulnerability to winter storms and tropical systems that track inland through Georgia. Helene in 2024 was severe enough to generate two separate federal declarations within four days.

Government & Municipal Code

Carlton operates as an incorporated city in Madison County. The municipal code is published through Municode and available at library.municode.com/ga/carlton-city-georgia.

Carlton does not have an adopted building code on file, which is relevant to anyone considering construction, renovation, or contracting work in the city.

Weather

Current forecasts for Carlton are available through the National Weather Service: NWS Forecast for Carlton, GA.

Active weather alerts can be monitored at: NWS Alerts – Carlton, GA.

The nearest observing weather station is Danielsville 2.8 SSE, approximately 3.4 miles from Carlton. Winter storm events, as the FEMA record reflects, are a genuine seasonal hazard in this part of the Georgia piedmont.

References

The law belongs to the people. Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 590 U.S. (2020)